Bethlehem Lutheran pastor plays an ongoing role in PCUSA’s Middle East politics
By John H. Adams, The Layman Online, December 14, 2005
The Presbyterian News Service published a story recently quoting a letter written by the Rev. Mitri Raheb, pastor of Christmas Lutheran Church in Bethlehem’s Old City.
Lutheran Pastor Mitri Raheb of Bethlehem.Raheb is a frequent source for denominational news and political thinking on the Middle East. The Presbyterian Church (USA) lists him as a guest professor at the Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary and the mission partner in residence on the Worldwide Ministries Division staff of the denomination. But when his high-profile political activity becomes sensitive, it rarely mentions those connections.
In the most recent of many reports of Raheb’s political activity, the PNS said he was criticizing Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton because she voiced support for the construction of a wall that separates Israel from Palestinian settlements.
Raheb said the wall is offensive because “it is designed to allow maximum expansion for Israeli settlements (which are unequivocally illegal under international law) and minimal space for Palestinian towns and villages to grow or even draw their livelihood.”
He made no mention of Israel’s contention that the wall is intended to provide a security against suicide bombers who have murdered hundreds of Israeli citizens – and that it has been effective in reducing those deaths. Nor did the story mention the role Raheb has played in shaping the PCUSA’s controversial policies in the Middle East.
Raheb, the author of Bethlehem Besieged, was featured on the Web site of the Presbyterian Peacemaking Program in October to promote a number of speaking engagements that were sponsored by the Presbyterian UN Office, a lobbying effort that is often at odds with U.S. policy and many other Christian efforts.
The Presbyterian UN Office says its role is to “open doors for religious leaders to communicate with global policy makers. Diplomats and UN staff look for opportunities to hear facts from the ground as well as to think outside the box with leaders who have cutting edge ideas and information.”
Raheb was a contributor to the February 2003 edition of Perspectives, an online publication of the Office of the General Assembly. He wrote a column titled “United Across War Fields” that included an item that suggested war itself separates people who claim Christ into two camps: faithful and unfaithful.
- “A dialogue is happening between two American Christians,” Raheb said. “They are two Christians in the United States, yet they are divided between one who is in favor of war and one who opposes war vehemently. The divide is not only between a Democrat and a Republican. It is deeper than that. It is a division between two individuals who are Christians – each claiming Christ. I ask myself, where is the unity? Is unity possible in such a context, or is it a gap between the faithful and the unfaithful?”
He added a personal story:
- “A friend of mine, who is a great supporter of our ministry in Bethlehem, is a strong Republican and a supporter of a war against Iraq. I strongly oppose a war. I believe that it is idolatry. It is deception by the ruling powers of this world. The question I ask myself – can we still be friends, or am I compromising the gospel? We remain good friends; we talk about everything – even about President Bush. We remain united. But is this a false unity of two Christians?”
In a column titled “A Reflection for Christmas Eve, 2004: O Little Town Of Bethlehem,” published by the Presbyterian Peacemaking Program, Raheb blistered Israel for its treatment of the Palestinians but, again, did not mention any Palestinian provocations.
Raheb was featured in a denominational news story on June 30, 2004, titled Middle East Christians hang tough in tough circumstances. He was quoted as saying, “I wish I could say what Amanuel Ghareeb (a Presbyterian from Kuwait) said: That American troops came to liberate us from Saddam and the Iraqi occupation. Unfortunately, I cannot say that about American troops. And you know why? Kuwait is oily. Palestine is only holy.”
He was quoted in another denominational news story prior to being the guest speaker at an event sponsored by the Worldwide Ministries Division of the General Assembly Council. According to the story, titled “Palestinians urge U.S. Christians to do more than just talk,” Raheb joined other Palestinians in urging a “boycott of U.S. companies that invest in Israel’s illegal settlements.”
“To have statements is not enough,” he said. “They might be good for discussions within churches … but they’re not much help to us on the ground.”
In its July 2, 2004, story about the General Assembly’s approval of a resolution calling for divestment of denominational funds in corporations doing business with Israel, Raheb was the first person quoted. The story did not mention his long-time denominational connection or his political lobbying on behalf of the Palestinians. It described him simply as “an ecumenical guest.”
These are the three paragraphs that referred to Raheb:
- When a handful of commissioners expressed reservations about the action, the Rev. Mitri Raheb, a Lutheran pastor from Bethlehem, an ecumenical guest at the Assembly, said divestment is important because it is a way for the churches to take direct action. For too long, he said, the churches have simply issued statements – and that is not enough.
- “We have to send strong messages to such companies,” Raheb said, referring specifically to Caterpillar Inc., the American builder of the armored tractors and bulldozers the Israeli army uses to demolish Palestinian homes.
- “Sisters and brothers, this is a moment of truth,” Raheb said.
Without word from the other side of the issue, the commissioners voted overwhelmingly in favor of divestment, a policy that has spawned indignation from both Jewish and Christian groups.
A few other PCUSA references to Raheb:
- He was quoted in the September 2004 online edition of HungryHearts, an online publication of the denomination’s Office of Spiritual Formation.
- A PNS story in April 2002 quoted Raheb as describing a clash between Israelis and Palestinians in Bethlehem as “hate in action” – implying that the “hate” was the Israelis’.
- In a PNS story in July 1997, Raheb cited Israel’s use of bulldozers to clear out terrorist areas as a target for protests.
- A PNS story in August 2001 quoted him as saying, “Israelis now don’t feel the pain like Palestinians,” he says. “Before, soldiers had to walk through the narrow streets in Gaza, and they were able to feel what it was like: what it means (to know) that you can be hurt. Nowadays they use Apache helicopters. This war, for them, is becoming like a computer game. And they cannot be directly hurt like us.”
- Raheb was quoted by the Washington Office in its online report for January/February 2004. The report is a collection of statements, including one titled “Desperation deepens for Palestinians in Occupied Areas.” The Washington Office quoted him as saying the Palestinians “are struggling to keep their humanity, for they are being treated like animals.”
- In an August 2000 PNS story, Raheb was quoted as expressing displeasure with some of the Old Testament stories that described Israel’s conquest of the land of Canaan. “Some of the texts are very painful, very difficult to follow, you know? Pieces in the Book of Joshua, some pieces in Judges.” He summed up the Old Testament Scriptures: “Some are very good. Some are very ugly.”
- Some of Raheb’s comments are published in a PCUSA resource on the Middle East titled Christian Presence in Israel and Palestine. The resource said Christians were leaving the region and Raheb was quoted as saying, “This problem could make the Holy Land a so-called Christian Disneyland, with nice, old churches where groups can come and wander, but without any real, living community. The Holy Land will lose its sense of significance if there are no Christians there.”
- During a March 2003 PresbyNet discussion on “International Voices on Iraq,” Raheb is quoted as saying, “I wish we could send both Bush and Saddam on an island to fight alone because they are not the ones paying the price.”